Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Mar 08/02) - MLA Floyd Roland wants to see legislation that gives bar owners the right to not serve pregnant women.

On Monday, he suggested the government should be considering legislation as well as education when combating FAS.

"I don't want to see a jail full of pregnant women, or a row of pregnant women in front of a judge waiting to be fined because they were out drinking or had a glass of wine," Roland said.

But the Inuvik Boot Lake MLA said he wants the government to explicitly permit bar owners the right to refuse service to women who are pregnant.

"I think we need to do more than put out magnetic stickers and pamphlets and diaper bags," said Roland, referring to the kits that will be distributed to each family with a newborn starting this summer. "We need to have a little more serious message out there, and the more serious the better."

In an attempt at preventative medicine, the territorial government is adopting a pro-active approach to childhood development.

On Monday the government announced a comprehensive childhood development program that will place a family visitor in each community by 2004.

The visitors, to be hired by local health boards, will inform parents, particularly those of developmentally delayed children, of resources and strategies they can use to help their children.

Last week, the Department of Health and Social Services announced it will host a one-day seminar aimed at detecting when pregnant women are at risk of drinking.

The screening process is aimed at reducing the incidence of fetal alcohol syndrome in the NWT.

Following the announcement of the screening training, one front-line social services worker cautioned that the government is treading on shaky legal ground if it has any intention of compelling pregnant women not to drink

Though he agreed to discuss the types of changes Roland was recommending, Health Minister Michael Miltenberger said the government will not be wielding its legislative authority to address the problem.

Miltenberger said the approach is "fraught with many ethical and legal considerations."